11-year-old Jamoneisha Merrit was sleeping at a friend’s house when she woke up in agony after being doused by boiling water by a friend.
The act was part of a prank war gone terribly wrong.
The 12-year-old girl responsible for the attack has tried to kill herself over the incident, according to her mother.
via NYDN:
“My daughter tried to stab herself with a knife,” said mom Shernett Panton, 34, on Thursday. “It was a prank — not a good prank. But after she saw what she did to (Jamoneisha) was really wrong, she tried to kill herself.”
The burned girl’s mother allegedly choked 12-year-old Aniya Grant Stuart over the incident, and the angry parent appeared Thursday morning spewing threats outside the Panton apartment.
“I’m going to cut your face, you f—ing b—-!” Ebony Merritt screamed at Panton. “I’m going to burn your f—ing house down! You let this happen to my daughter!”
According to Panton, the girl she knew as Jamoni was a friend of her daughter Aniya and basically moved into their apartment about a month ago.
“They always prank each other,” said Panton. “My daughter was sleeping and Jamoni poured cold water on Aniya. My daughter was like, ‘OK, if you’re gonna do a prank on me, I’m gonna prank you back.’
“But my daughter — I don’t know what she was thinking — boiled hot water and poured it on Jamoni’s face.”
Panton was sleeping around 4 a.m. when the bizarre incident occurred as Jamoni slept on a couch in the family living room.
The girl was rushed to Harlem Hospital for treatment of the burns. The Rev. Robert Rice prayed with the burn victim, her mother and her grandmother in the girl’s hospital room.
“She’s doing fine, she’s strong,” said Rice. “Her spirit is strong. I gave her a hug, and she’s smiling.”
Aniya was under a suicide watch at Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center after trying to stab herself with a knife, according to her mom.
“What she did was really wrong, but it’s too much right now,” said Panton, 34. “My daughter is 12. Everybody makes mistakes.”
After Panton told The News that the Merritts were threatening her family every day, Ebony Merritt appeared outside the clan’s Findlay Ave. apartment and launched into an expletive-laden tirade.
The police were called to the scene to speak with Merritt and defuse the situation.
Both of these kids are going to need some serious psychological help in dealing with the aftermath of the situation. We hope they get it.
